small maple bowl

Compared to the first bowls I made this past week, this bowl (at barely the size of a business card 3.5×2”) is downright huge.

A birthday gift for my mom, (overfilled with chocolate Lindt balls) made from another saved piece of the civil war era maple from the neighbors yard (the bowl, not the candy). The story goes that right after the civil war a man came around town planting maple trees, and put a hay penny under each one. Three of these trees remain on my street two in my yard, another on my property line. When others came down, people looked for, and in some cases found the hay penny! I saved a bunch of this wood from the neighbors tree, their other one is living on borrowed time, with parasite plants and insects within I hope there is an amount of viable wood left in that one when it finally goes. It’s also the remaining female tree (seed dropping) of the bunch, and we have dozens if not hundreds of it’s offspring in the back 40.

The previous bowls were turned from 4/4 stock, that has been acclimating to the shop for a few years now. This started out at little more than potential firewood. I knew it was a little dicey to include the center of the logs, but it’s had a while to season, so far so good. I’m prepared to get creative with it, rather than turn it smaller if some cracks or checks appear.

This is finished with walnut oil.

I suppose I could count it as part of my 30 projects in 30 days challenge, but being a gift, and not going up for auction, it’s an extra project and won’t be counted as such… at this rate, I’m looking at 33 or 34 projects for November! Today starts week three, and my slide down the back nine. (well, 15).